TALENT, Ore. — A local makerspace got some help from a southern Oregon foundation as it makes equipment for frontline workers.

After closing to the public, Talent Maker City turned to making personal protective equipment for healthcare workers. Last month the organization said it needed donations to keep its efforts going. The Cow Creek Umpqua Indian Foundation answered and gave them a $7,700 grant.

“When we learned that […] the need was here and that our friends, our frontline workers, our first responders, they were in need, we had no choice but to utilize our space,” said Talent Maker City Executive Director Ryan Wilcoxson.

The money was used to purchase two 3D printers. It’ll help make everything from ventilator manifolds, which allow a single ventilator to support four to six patients, to intubation boxes.

Nicole Costantino is a reporter and weather forecaster for NBC5 News. She comes to us from Phoenix, Arizona where she graduated from Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication. She also received a minor in Meteorology.

Before coming to NBC5 News Nicole was an anchor, weather forecaster and reporter at KAET in Phoenix, AZ. In college, she interned for CBS Evening News in New York City and the NBC4 Investigative Team in Los Angeles.

In her free time, you can find Nicole cheering on her Sun Devils and exploring the Pacific Northwest. Feel free to send story ideas and chocolate chip cookie recipes to her on Facebook (@NicoleCostantino) or Twitter (@NicCostantino).